FreeBorn
by Hitsuji-Kumo
Summary: More than 15 years after Neo was unplugged...it follows the story of Cat and Alei
1. Confusion

Thanks to Scottishlass for the great inspiration, "The Big One" was the story that made me write this one. I know it's not much yet, but I'm still working on it! Okay, I know people were confused about the whole first paragraph, but I cleared it up (I hope) in the next one. Finally! The first chapter-more to come, I'm writing it as I type this.  
  
Disclaimer: The Matrix and its characters don't belong to me! I wish they did! But they don't! Only Cat and Jake do…who's Jake? Well, you have yet to find out! Mwahahahahhahaha!  
  
*FreeBorn*  
  
  
  
"Go!" Someone was yelling, "go now!" Suddenly, as if a switch had been flipped on allowing her body to move again, Cat was running. The ground moved unfeasibly fast beneath her toes. A bullet ricocheted off the sidewalk between her feet. A gunshot sounded not far behind her, and another. A loud groan of pain leapt from the mouth of the woman following her. More shots. Why wasn't dad doing anything? Cat thought angrily. Mom was hurt! He could stop bullets; why wasn't he doing it now? Cat heard the sound of her dad's boots slapping the road near her. He was carrying mom, she knew. Cat heard more gunshots, a grunt. "Get yourself out, Cat. Don't worry about us, we're right behind you!" Her father cried, but Cat knew they would not make it. The phone booth approached, the phone was ringing, and Cat picked it up. Looking up, Cat saw the figures of her parents lying dead on the ground, and she screamed.  
  
Cat gasped and sat up. Damn! That dream again! This was the fifth time she'd had it, and every time it felt more and more real. Cat wiped the sweat off her brow with a shaking arm. Slowly, she got up and began dressing. She walked to the mess room, and poured herself some snot and vomit, (as she called it). It didn't seem to matter that she had lived on the stuff for fifteen years, Cat still couldn't get used to the crap. Neo walked in with Trinity at his side, a tired look masking his features. Trinity was much the same, exhausted from whatever they had been doing yesterday. Probably something to do with the Matrix, Cat decided.  
  
"Morning, Dad," Cat said. She was surprised at how rough her voice sounded. From screaming, no doubt.  
  
"Good morning, Cat. Something wrong?" He replied, concernedly.  
  
"Had that dream again. Can't figure it out."  
  
"Try symbolism, dear," Trinity cut in.  
  
"I did! Nothing seems to fit. It's got to mean something important. I know it is symbolism, I knew it right from the start, being that I can't even enter the Matrix," Cat said, her voice rising in an angry tone.  
  
"Don't worry, it'll come to you in time, I promise."  
  
"Easy for you to say," Cat muttered, "you don't have to deal with the stupid dream every fucking night."  
  
Neo's eyebrows rose with disbelief.  
  
Cat, ignoring her father, got up and left, her spork clattering noisily on the metal table.  
  
Sitting in her cold cubicle later that day, Cat began to wonder what it would be like to actually enter the Matrix. Was it truly impossible for her to do it? Some how, Cat knew she was going to have to go in to find an answer. That only by living the things her parents lived, would she be able to figure out this mystery plaguing her mind. More than that, Cat just wished she had something to do with her time. Life was so boring on this damn ship. How the hell did Tank stand it for so many years?  
  
"I can't help worrying about Cat," Trinity began, concerned.  
  
"Trin, don't. Cat's perfectly capable of fending for herself. She'll figure this out, I promise you."  
  
Trinity sighed, sitting back on the cot. Neo sat next to her, smiling.  
  
"What we should worry about is that little attitude problem of hers. Acting like you, 'Queen of the World.'"  
  
"Not at all. I at least know how to deal with it, dear!" Trinity retorted playfully, putting extra emphasis on "dear".  
  
"Sure you do. Telling her all the right things at the right time." Neo laughed.  
  
Trinity picked up the pillow that was at the head of the bed and gave Neo a whack. Neo, giggling, grabbed the pillow out of her hands and pushed her off the bed with it.  
  
"Ow! You idiot!" She yelled in mock anger.  
  
Neo laughed harder. A loud knock on the door told them they had gotten a bit noisy.  
  
"Is there a herd of elephants in there, 'cause I swear I heard one yelling!" Tank shouted from outside.  
  
"Sorry!" Neo and Trinity said simultaneously, trying to keep the laughter out of their voice. God, they were acting like kids!  
  
"What's the stat on the new kid?" Morpheus asked.  
  
"Normal. We should get him out as soon as possible; the agents may figure it out." Tank replied.  
  
"We're going in, then. Get Neo and Trinity in here. We'll leave immediately."  
  
"Yes sir." 


	2. Alei

*FreeBorn*  
  
Chapter 2  
  
Disclaimer: You know, if I owned the Matrix, I wouldn't have to write on FANfiction.net…. ^_^ so...if you couldn't figure that out, jelly-fish brains, it means I don't own Matrix and/or any of its characters, unless it's something I made up, like Cat and Jake…  
  
Green codes flashed across the screen. Jake blinked, trying to make sense of the junk floating through his old computer monitor. Then, as quickly as it had started, the codes disappeared, and the screen went blank. "Fucked up computer. Jeeze, what's it take to get a good one these days?" He mumbled angrily to himself.  
  
Words began to type out slowly on the monitor.  
  
The world is not what it seems, Alei.  
  
"Wait a tick, what the hell is this? Probably Max playing some joke. How the fuck did he get through to my computer? I put up firewalls…" Jake trailed off, staring at the next words that were displayed on the screen:  
  
Alei, they are there, watching you. We know what you're searching for. We know you seek answers to the question you have. You know the question, don't you? … Answers will come in time, if you follow… Pick up the phone, Alei  
  
The phone rang, breaking the silence that was becoming almost creepy. Jake picked it up, startled out of his trance.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Jake? You okay? You don't sound too great."  
  
"Yeah. I'm fine, Max. What do you want?"  
  
"Elise and I were going to, uh, go to the mall," he spoke the word mall as if it were poison, and added quickly "not my idea, of course, but she wanted to invite you to come." Max said this last thing pleadingly; if you were a guy at school, if you valued your life, you weren't caught anywhere near the place-that was strictly women territory.  
  
Jake hesitated, then remembered the message on his computer  
  
… Answers will come in time, if you follow…  
  
"Uh, yeah, sure. I'll go. Lemme just get my stuff, I'll be right over."  
  
"Sure. See you."  
  
Jake grabbed his laptop and left the apartment, locking it, even though somehow he knew he would not be returning for quite some time.  
  
The Jacksonville mall was relatively small, with only about twenty or so stores in the entire building. Jake stood outside a stored entitled "Spencer's Gifts". There was a time when he would have loved nothing more than to browse the crazy shop with his best friend. Max Evans was lucky. He had a family, a real home and money to spare. He had everything he wanted, including good looks and someone who loved him. Max's neat blond hair and sapphire eyes were a contrast to his unkempt friend's scraggly red hair and dull, evergreen eyes. Jake was cursed. He had lost what little family he had in a car crash, and lived in an ugly apartment with only enough money to pay for the rent. Thankfully, his parents had left a laptop and a few computers. According to Jake, this was all anyone should need to live out life. But, regardless, he was always miserable. When he was around Max, though, he tried his hardest not to show it. Max was always worrying about him, and had offered him a place to stay in his own home several times. That was the problem with Max; he was too nice. Jake was a hacker away from high school. People would pay him money for Jake to hack into files and change things or get data. His customers were mostly terrible students who asked him to change their grades. If Jake was lucky, which was not often, sometimes he would get enough money to pay for rent, with some left over for other things. There were people out there, crazy people, who felt sorry for him and would act like he was a child, doing things for him that he could do perfectly well for himself. Jake hated people who pitied him. But he hated even more the people who teased him about his life. Jake would have loved nothing more than to see those people thrust into the life he was living. They wouldn't be so tough after experiencing what he had to go through. The best times for Jake were when he was searching for the Matrix. Seeking out things that seemed impossible, and relating the events to three mysterious people named Neo, Trinity and Morpheus. Jake had suspected that at one time all three of them had been hackers like him.  
  
Someone tapped him on the shoulder, and Jake jumped. Turning around, Jake faced a man in a long black jacket with sunglasses and brown hair.  
  
"Hello, Alei."  
  
"How do you know that name?" Jake asked, cautiously.  
  
"You'd be surprised at how much we know about you, Alei."  
  
" 'We'?" Jake began, and then his eyebrows rose in recognition. "You're Neo, aren't you?"  
  
"Yes. Do you want answers?" The man replied.  
  
"Like hell, I do."  
  
"Follow me then. Leave your computer; you won't be needing it anymore."  
  
Jake followed the man, wondering who was going to pay his rent and what Max would think when he found Jake gone, without his laptop. Jake didn't notice when a woman clad in black leathers and the same type of sunglasses joined his guide.  
  
"Not what I thought he would look like."  
  
"Yeah, Morpheus didn't tell us he was a kid."  
  
"How'd you know it was this kid?"  
  
"He had a laptop with him. It's typical of hackers with no real life. I was the same."  
  
"Cat will be thrilled."  
  
"I hope you're being sarcastic." Neo turned to Jake as he stopped. "This is where I leave you. Trinity will take you to Morpheus, and then you will choose the path for yourself."  
  
"Welcome, Alei. As you no doubt have guessed, I am Morpheus," the dark man spoke to him, his voice a soothing murmur.  
  
"It's a pleasure to meet you, sir," Jake said, grasping Morpheus's hand tightly, still in a state of shock.  
  
"No, the pleasure is mine. Sit down."  
  
Jake noticed the two leather chairs, and sat down in one, eyes glazing over in admiration.  
  
"I imagine you are feeling a bit like Alice, hmm? Tumbling down the rabbit hole?"  
  
He sat down in the red chair across from Jake. He continued.  
  
"I can see it in your eyes. You have the look of a man who accepts what he sees because he is expecting to wake up. Ironically, this is not far from the truth…"  
  
"You take the blue pill and the story ends.  You wake in your bed and you believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill," Morpheus opened his other hand, a deep blood-colored capsule sat in his palm, "and you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes."  
  
Jake hesitated. Did he really want this? To possibly never see Max or any of his other friends again? Wait a second, he thought, what friends? Jake reached for the red pill, and Morpheus reminded him,  
  
"Remember, Alei, all I'm offering is the truth. Nothing more."  
  
Jake picked up the pill, examining the smooth red capsule, scrutinizing every detail of it. This was going to change the course of his life, forever. Jake popped the pill into his mouth, and, taking the glass of water that sat in front of him, swallowed it. Jake was surprised when nothing happened.  
  
"Good. Now come with me."  
  
"What's happening?" Cat asked, peering over Neo's shoulder at the computer. "What are they doing?"  
  
Neo turned around and looked at Cat, smiling broadly.  
  
"Patience, Cat. Patience." 


End file.
